Apple’s iPod “while very good, are becoming very common and part of what drove the iPod into the top spot in a rapidly growing market was its exclusivity. If everyone you know has one, how exclusive is it really? Also, Apple had three known competitive disadvantages: The products wouldn’t play radio, the platform didn’t allow for sharing music nor did it support flat rate pricing, and it lacked support from both the Music industry and retailers both of which wanted someone else to work with. Microsoft had a good shot with Zune but it seems someone missed a critical meeting,” Rob Enderle writes for TG Daily.
“For two days, Zune was in the top-10 products sold through Amazon and made it as high as number 2. On day three, it dropped like a rock. The first two days showed the potential the right product could have. The third showed this was a swing and a miss,” Enderle writes. “The potential for the right product was in excess of 10 million units – and possibly substantially more. This was a similar effort to the Xbox, but unlike the team that put the Xbox together, the team running Zune didn’t understand the hardware.”
“Microsoft gets software and they are learning about services but Apple is the leading expert is hardware and the MP3 player market is clearly a hardware market now. Much like Apple didn’t understand the power of software in the 80s Microsoft doesn’t seem to grasp the importance of hardware design in the 2000s and that is very telling in this most recent battle,” Enderle writes.
Full article here.
First, Apple’s iPod “plays radio” via the $49 Apple iPod Radio Remote which allows users to listen to FM radio on their iPods and control everything with a convenient wired remote. Second, Apple iTunes’ “iMix” feature allows for sharing music, and with total iMixes now approaching 1 million in the US iTunes Store alone, it seems to be a very popular social feature; certainly more popular than “squirting” tracks that allow users 3-plays-then-self-destruct-leaving-only-an-ad-behind like Zune. Third, music subscriptions haven’t proven to be popular with consumers. People like to own their music. Fourth, all major music labels support iTunes and major retailers overwhelmingly support and recommend iPod over all the also-rans. Enderle’s conceit that “iPod lacked support from both the Music industry and retailers both of which wanted someone else to work with” is pure, unsubstantiated poppycock that’s completely refuted by the facts.
The Zune software has been panned by reviewers – perhaps even more than the Zune device itself (if that’s possible) – so, Enderle’s contention that Microsoft has only failed with respect to the Zune hardware also doesn’t pass the reality test.
There’s a lot more wrong with Enderle’s article, of course. As is usually the case, Enderle just makes up some wild ideas and writes and writes in a vain attempt to justify his goofy baseless concepts. At least he seems to have figured out that Microsoft’s Zune screams failure, even if he doesn’t fully grasp why.
Zune is a failure simply because the market does not want and has no compelling need for grotesque versions of iPod+iTunes from Microsoft.
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Rob, you’re the biggest fucking moron in the industry. Shut up and do something more practical with your life, or just admit you’re on Gates’ payroll.
Love music? Go iPod + iTunes + $
…or if you are poor and have no taste go for the ugly version, Zune + Zune Marketplace + Points (?!?)
Like reading about tech? Go Walt Mossberg
..or if you’re a bit challenged and have no judgement, go Rob Enderle
“Exclusivity”???!!! Enderle thinks that Exclusivity is what made the iPod the success it is. What a tool! When you see such a weak straw man set up at the beginning of an article, there is littel point in continuing. So I didn’t.
Microsoft doesn’t get DESIGN…. period.
Software, hardware, interfaces, you name it. Microsoft doesn’t get it!
Microsoft was founded, is run by and for the twirps, pencil-necks and dweebs who ran the A/V equipment in Junior High School. Finally, thanks to MS, there’s a place for them to go and be accepted. Kinda brings a tear to my eye…
Zune Tang… Hmmm… Tang… wasn’t “Tang” the powdered orange drink created for Skylab back in the 1970s?
Sure do like the rants, though – quite entertaining so far – while the words are intellectually devoid of all manner of reality and logic, they do fill the coffers of absurdity and create fuel for the fire on this page – which have caught lots of folks with their collective pants down.
I’m beginning to wonder if he’s a Slugworth in Willy Wonka’s factory… I’ll let you figure out the reference.
The only reason the iPod caught on was its exclusivity? I couldn’t care less about being “exclusive” – I just want a cool product that works. It’s stupid to call Enderle names because he’s not stupid – he’s obviously getting paid by Microsoft so he just makes stories up, like the National Enquirer or Star. We don’t continually bash the Enquirer for not being real journalism. He’s just a marketing tool. Let’s just stop referring to his articles on MDN — you’re preaching to the choir and just raising Enderle’s profile. MACDAILYNEWS fuels Enderle’s career — why don’t you just STOP it???
To Peter J.
“I’m so so so tired of the “it doesn’t have a radio” line for one of the iPod’s disadvantages. If you want a radio, by a $20 radio…
I have an iPod so I don’t have to listen to the radio. I have a full 4th Gen 40Gig iPod and I don’t miss the radio… at all!”
Sorry to inform you that I just bought 3 FM radios from Walmart for $1 each. (I bought 3 cause the 2 batteries inside – Walmart charges $3.95 each for — go figure
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The FM has an on / volume control and two pushbuttons. ONe for scan and one for reset. It does all the rest. Works great in the city, suck s in the country. LOL
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N.
Hmmmm, “”exclusivity”: while there is a certain “if everyone has one, it can’t be cool” factor, I do not think iPod being “cool” had anything to do with being “exclusive”.”
—- YEP. I just finished talking to a kid in high school. He said that if you did not have an iPod (any kind) then you just were not “in”. Period. People that could not afford an iPod, well the kids understood, but you still were not hip.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” /> Now if you pay all that money and buy something besides an iPod, then your just stupid.
I figure that when iPods become saturated enough, say when every other kids has one, then something else will become the “hip” thing to use. Probably made by Apple then too. LOL
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And to Zune Tang:
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Sorry, I thought you were just trying to be extra witty. Now I think the others are right. You are just an MS plant. Like the person who says that they like the mini emergency spare tire cause it saves space, even though the wheel well is still the same size as before. LOL
N.
If ZuneTang was a plant, wouldn’t he attempt to be more subtle?
“what drove the iPod into the top spot in a rapidly growing market was its exclusivity.”
How about instead: it works, it is so simple even a teenager can use it, it runs on Mac, even if someone can’t afford an iPod they can still join the party with iTunes’ 30 sec samples, each model is so compelling for non-conflicting parts of my life that I want all three models.
Plus is is exclusive with the U2 model, Red, shuffle-clip, Black=bling, Nike deal, games, movies, etc.
misha bawa gets it. So does norm e. Both are great posts. Looking forward to more from you two.
misha, thank you for sharing those informative links with the MDN group.
Let’s go with the Abe Lincoln first. Honest Abe. Is there such a thing as a Mary Todd Lincoln? I’ll try anything but the crap coming out of Cupertino.
Cuddles.
Your potential. Our passion.
Enderle makes his money by getting people to read his stuff or get his opinion. Therefore he writes things he knows will get read – sensational stories with little or no real news, research, thought or intelligence behind them. Take them for what they are: advertising for a small firm lead by a man with a small mind groveling for business.
**Apple’s iPod “while very good, are becoming very common and part of what drove the iPod into the top spot in a rapidly growing market was its exclusivity.**
Marketing nonsense this, as it’s the product the counts.
Witness BMW, especially its 3-series, which outsells the cheaper Ford Mondeo here in the UK. The BMW sells and sells, but doesn’t lose its desirability — because, like the iPod, it really is very, very good.
Hear that folks?
“I’ll try anything but the crap coming out of Cupertino.”
Well apparently there are plants growing at Cupertino putting out crap oxygen and mixing with the rest of the world’s oxygen.
My guess is Zune Tang will have selective breathing or he will have to hold his breath so as not to breath the crap oxygen coming out of Cupertino.
Any bets as to what he will do? Personally I think it will be selective breathing.
What drove the iPod to the top spot was that it was designed for the consumer, not for greedy corporate executives who like to milk the consumer for every penny they own.
The iPod is simple, easy to use and it does what it does well.
Enderle doesn’t write articles for the consumer, he writes articles to keep getting pay checks from those greedy corporate executives.
WTF What the hell is that guy babbling about ?!?!?
In Steven Levy’s “The Perfect Thing” I learned that originally Sony worried about the isolation of the Walkman, and gave it sharing features. They were dropped because no one actually wanted them.
The genius of the ipod has always been what they left out. People want wireless because they never want to have to plug in… but it’s slow for sync and you can’t charge the battery that way. People want sharing because they want their original Napster back (help yourself to any music in the room for free, without having to ask for pay.)
Squirt is just a contrived feature. People buy the Zune because it’s not an ipod–a statement of “individuality”. And from what I read it doesn’t suck too bad.
Enderle … complete nonesense.
For all of the folks out there that support the Zune because of the FM radio… I have been working in retail for the last 2 years selling iPods. 1.A good number of people buy the iPod because they are sick of the garbage/commercials on radio.
2.The FM adaptor for the iPod…. no one ever buys it.
Sooooo please quit touting the Zune and a better product when this is just one more “add on” that Microsoft has put into their product that is completely unnecessary!
@ MDN: “First, Apple’s iPod “plays radio” via the $49 Apple iPod Radio Remote which allows users to listen to FM radio on their iPods and control everything with a convenient wired remote.”
And the remote part is the only feature worth a damn on the product. The FM tuner itself is flimsy and does a spotty job of pulling in FM (!) signals. It’s definitly not worth the $50 they’re charging for it. So, if you don’t think radio is worth being on an iPod, just say so. But don’t pass off this ‘solution’ as adequate – it’s not.
“Enderle’s conceit that “iPod lacked support from both the Music industry and retailers both of which wanted someone else to work with” is pure, unsubstantiated poppycock that’s completely refuted by the facts.”
Well, not exactly. Apple got a nice deal from the industry back when the industry didn’t think Apple could do anything that would be a world wide smash. Now, however, it’s pretty clear that they’d icepick Jobs in his sleep if they could get away with it. As for retailers, they too were fine with iPods & iTS when THEY’re power & influence weren’t threatened. But ever since iTS started selling fullength “near-DVD quality” movies … different story. Walmart & Target have been vocal and clear about how they would like the industry to stop playing footsy with Apple, and are coming up with their own sales models to undercut iTS. What do think is going to happen when these plans inevitably fail? These retailers maight start fighting ‘dirty’. Hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake here folks. No telling what might happen. That’s the facts.
MDN wasn’t the only one wrong on this post though.
from Enderle: “Apple’s iPod, while very good, are becoming very common and part of what drove the iPod into the top spot in a rapidly growing market was its exclusivity. If everyone you know has one, how exclusive is it really?”
Utter BS. It’s logically impossible for a mass consumer device to attain success by not being available to the masses. And if the masses don’t want a product, said product is rarely a success. No one cares if everyone has a Toyota Camry – they just want a reasonably priced car that’s reliable. Similarly, people want iPods b/c they’re affordable & ‘just work’. And look good too.
“Also, Apple had three known competitive disadvantages: The products wouldn’t play radio, the platform didn’t allow for sharing music nor did it support flat rate pricing, and it lacked support from both the Music industry and retailers both of which wanted someone else to work with. Microsoft had a good shot with Zune but it seems someone missed a critical meeting.”
I’ll agree with that last point. Zune points? Buggy software that’s incompatible with your company’s entire existing media ecosystem? “Squirting”? Somebody should be fired.
But everything else Enderly prattles on about shows him to be as dense as tungsten. Last time I checked, 99ct per song IS flat rate pricing. iMix IS a decent way to share your taste in music, which is all “squirting” is designed to do (btw – reports say it doesn’t even work as advertized half the time, even if you do find some other lonely soul who owns a Zune). iMix is a more convenient & realistic way to be “social” in this way. And while having an iPod that could natively tune in to FM – or even AM – would be cool as shit IMO, clearly it is no disadvantage that iPod doesn’t have such a feature. How else do you explain iPod’s massive success in the face of competitors that do have it?
And finally, Apple has all the support it needs – for now – from the industry. It’s grudging support, make no mistake, and if Apple slips up somehow it will likely dissappear overnight. But for now, and into the forseebale future, it’s ‘there’ enough to allow Apple to be successful.
All of which begs a very old, very familiar question to anyone who’s read these pages for any length of time … WHY DOES MDN CONTINUE TO PUBLISH WHAT THIS GUY WRITES?
It would be better for the entire techworld if Enderly were unemployed in his chose profession – as a tech pundit – but that worthy goal is made all the harder when you link his innane stories. All MDN does is drive his hit numbers up, which in turn garauntees that ad-driven tech websites will keep hiring him!
On that score MDN, you guys are as dumb as he is.
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it’s the survival of the fittest and natural selections…
zune will fail coz it’s a freak of nature or it doesn’t has the attributes to survive in this competitve enviroment.
just like the neanthethal it doesn’t stand a chance against the homo sapien.
nice try microsoft.
You said it macrohard…
Zune will die because it is Sh*t compared to the iPod. M$ makes crappy, bug ridden, software that everyone just tolerates, and they have even less clue about hardware.
Let the market be the judge…oh yeah…it already has judged…and the loser is…
I have to laugh when dipshits like Zune Tang (Whom I still suspect is a Mac user trying to gee us up and whom I find very entertaining irrespective) excuse M$ efforts on the basis that “it’s only their first version” and “it’s better than Apple’s first version X years ago”. Hilarious. That logic doesn’t doesn’t cut it with rational customers, they just want the most bang for their buck.
And it’s interesting that Apple not only competes, but often creates the market standard when it enters a market for the first time. It did it with the Apple 1, the MacIntosh OS, the Newton, Printers, the iPod (hhdrive based MP3), Nano (Flash) and not doubt soon will with the iPhone and iTV. I could go on. The hits just keep on coming.
For M$, the big flops just keep coming. Never forget that from a business perspective, the XBox is a massive flop, losing hundreds of millions of dollars.
“Zune is a failure simply because the market does not want and has no compelling need for grotesque versions of iPod+iTunes from Microsoft.”
And yet still it sells. More successfully in it’s first week than Mac OS X ever.
I heard Enderle on a recent The Tech Night Owl podcast and he sprouted this crap then, too. Admitedly he made some good points but most things he said were pure FUD. I couldn’t believe Steinberg let him get away with saying that Microsoft’s software service is “significantly superior to Apple’s” and that “Apple was lucky this time in that Microsoft didn’t get the hardware right.” Most reviewers I’ve heard/read have found Zune’s software and music store to be the main drawback to its success. Enderle seems to be living on a different planet at times…
“what drove the iPod into the top spot in a rapidly growing market was its exclusivity.”
More than likely what drove the Zune to it’s death was it’s “exclusivity”. No one to squirt to.